Producer furnace



Jan. 2, 1923.

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PRODUCER FURNAcE. FV| LED MAR. l5, 1920.

6 SHEETS-SHEET' l Jan. 2, 1923. 11,449,857

G. D. WHITE. PRODUCER FuRNAcE. FILED MAR. l5. 1920. 6 sHEETssHeET 3 Sectio/v C-O. Sat/on,

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Jam., 2, 1923., l,44,857

G. D. WHITE.

PRoDucr-:R FuRNAcE. FILED MAR. 15, 1920. 6 SHEETS-SHEET 4 Jan. 2, i923. l 1,4405857 c. D. wHlTE..

PRODUCER FURNAcE. FILED MAR. 15, 1920. 6 SHEETS-SHEET 5 Patented dan. l2, 1923..

'UNEF-EE@ STATES tareas? earear clasica..

GEORGE D. WHITE, OF IEORT ARTHUR, TEXAS, .ASSGNOR TO THE TEXAS COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF TEXAS.

PRODUCER FURNACE.

application mea March 15, 1920. serial No. 65,954.

T all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, GEORGE D. l/VHfTE, a citizen of the United States of America,

and a lresident of Iort Arthur, county of Jefferson, and State of Texas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Producer Furnaces, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part 10 thereof. t

My invention relates to furnaces, and particularly to such as are adapted to supp-ly hea-t at high temperatures to chemical retorts or stills.

Vhile the apparatus of my invention is `suitable for a wide variety of uses,'it is particularly intended for use in the manufacture of anhydrous aluminum` chloride or for carrying out other chemical reactions or treatments which require the stills or retorts to be heated to very high temperatures' such at 1500O F., 2000o F. and upward.

One object of my invention is to pro-vide a particularly economical and effective furnace in which gas is -generated o-r produced and then conducted-to the combustion chamber.

Another object is to provide apparatus of the character above indicated comprising a battery of retorts, a producer furnace, and simple andl improvedlmeans Afor regulating r and controlling the temperature in various parts of the retorts.

A further object of my invention 1s to distribute the combustion of the gases in a furnace of the producer type, so as to obtain a desired distribution of heat.

Another object of my invention 1s to provide a furnace having a primary air inlet, which is restricted so that incomplete combustion occurs, and'one or more auxiliary air inlets, provided at suitable points, for carrying forward and finally completing the combustion of the fuel, the location and regulation of the inlets being relied upon for controlling the temperature and heat distribution in the furnace and through the retorts.

In order that my invention may be thoroughly understood I will now proceed to describe the same in the following specification and point out the novel features thereof in appended claims.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a producer furnace and retorts arranged and constrlcted in accordance with my inventionand constituting an embodiment thereof.

Figure 2 is an enlarged sectional detail corresponding to a part of Figure 1.

.Figure 3 is a partially sectional front elevation ofthe battery of retorts and producer furnace shown in transverse section 1n Figure 1. The walls and battery of retorts are broken away to a greater or less extent to show the formation and arrangement of the passages.

Figure 4 is a sectional plan view of the same apparatus, showing four different elevations of Figure 1 taken on the lines A A, BB, C-C and D-D of Figure 1.

F1gure 5 is a sectional plan View showing the producer furnace more in detail and taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 1.

Figure 6 is a vsectional elevation of a modified form of Inv invention.

Figure 7 is a partially sectional front elevation of the furnace and battery of retorts shown in transverse section in Figure 1. The furnace walls and retorts are broken away to a greater or less extent to show the formation and arrangement of the passages.

Figure 8 is a sectional plan View of the same apparatus showing four different elevations of Figure 6 taken on lines E-E F-F, (ir-G and H-I-I of Figure 6.

In the drawings, 10 designates a gas producing furnace, and 11 a battery of retorts respectively designated 12-13-14-15. The gas producer Jfurnace has the oil vaporizing burner 16 which discharges into a primary combustion chamber 17 to which a limited amount of air is admitted through a restricted opening 18. The combustion of the hot-gasesis not complete and the mixture .passes out of the producer furnace through back of the combust-ion chamber and materially overlap.

Each of the combustion chambers is thus more or less subdivided and auxiliary air' inlets 25-26-27-28 open into the respective subdivisions of the combustion chamber and carry 'forward and finally complete the combustion of the gases. The hot gases which are completely burned leave the combustion chamber at the top and pass out through a passage 29, flow downward through a heat generating passage 30, and upward through an adjacent heat generating passage 31, finally passing through a passage 32 which is connected to the stack. The arrangement of the heat generating passages 30 and 31 is clearly shown in Figures 3 and 4.

The passages 30 and 31 are formed in the construction illustrated, by a plurality of hollow tiles 33 which are `spaced within an opening 34 in such manner that a plurality of air ychambers 35-36-37-38 are formed around the heat generating passages 30 and `31. Outside air is admitted to these several chambers nearthe top through openings 39'-4041-42, each of which is controlled, as clearly shown in igure 2, by a slide valve 43. Dampers 44--45-46-47 are arranged to control the respective hotair openings 25--26-27-28 and may be opened and closed by any suitable means such as a4 rod having a hook adapted to engage an eyelet 48 attached. to each damper. In order to prevent loss of heat when operating the damper the rod may be introduced through an opening in a plug '49 by removing the stopper 50.

Dampers 51 are provided at the openings in the passages 21 for regulating the relative amounts of gas passing to the several combustion chambers 22.

i In operation the burner 10 is started and plenty of air supplied to the primary combustionchamber 17 through `the opening 18 until the stills'and retorts are heated to a temperature of, say 16000 F., the temperature at different parts of each retort being indicated by pyrometers 52-53-54 as shown in Figure 1.

After this temperature is attained the producer firing is commenced, that is, eX- cess oil is admitted to the burnerl with enough primary air or steam to volatilize the'oil thus producing a hydrocarbon gas, only a. small proportion of thegas being subject to combustion in the primary chamber 17. The gases pass through conduit 19 into manifold 20 and are distributed through the openings controlled by dampers 51 into the several passages 21, and thence into the combustion chambers 22.

As the gases enter each combustion chamber 22, as indicated bythe arrows in Figure 1, they pass upwardly and are deflected into a' zigzag course by the baille plates 23 and 24. A limited amount ofy hot air is admitted from the chamber 35 through passage 25 controlled by damper 44 to the lower part of the combustion chamber where it mingles with the gas and produces combustion of a certain percentage of the gases received from the producer and generates heat immediately around the walls of the retort. As the gases pass upwardly through the upper sections of the combustion chamber 22 more air is admitted through the plassages 25-26-27--28 until iinally combustion is complete.

The burnt gases which pass out of the combustion chamber at the top through passages 29, are at high temperatures and pass downwardly through the conduit 30 and upwardly through the conduit 31. In this way the conduits are highly heated and the heat is taken from the gases and utilized before they. ass out through passage 32 to the stack. hese conduits 30 and 31, as already explained, constitute heat generating conduits and heat the air.which is ad-v mitted through regulating valves 43 in the several passages 39-40-41-42 so that the air is delivered hot through the passages 25-26-27--28 and is in particularly good Y condition to effect complete combustion of the hot gases produced at the nozzle or burnerl.

It is thus apparent that combustion is not established at one point and hot gases carried around the retorts, but combustion is instigated at one point and is carried forward vin stages throughout the combustion chambers which are immediately around the walls of/the retort. l

The amount of heat generated at each part of each retort is capable of control by regulating the air valves 43 and the dampers 44-45-46-47. rl`hus it is possible to produce a given temperature in one part of the retort and a diil'erent temperature in other parts of the retort or the regulation may be adjustedso as to provide a uniform heat distribution aru'nd the retort. Not only is it possible to regulate the temperature of each retort but the relative temperatures of the several retorts may be closely and carefully adjusted by regulating the dampers 51 to admit a greater or less quantity of combustible gases to each chamber.

Emctmples 0 ftemperature regulation..

lll

ture is reached producer firing is introduced, the volume of oil admitted through the nozzle being gradually increased and the volume of air or steam being gradually decreased so that only enough' is admitted to volatilize the oil into hydrocarbon vapors. The partially burnt gas is then admitted, as already described, to the combustion chamber and the hot auxiliary air is first admitted to the combustion chamber through the passage 25. The amount of gas and oxygen admitted to the main combustio-n chamber 22 is increased until thedesired temperature of 20000 F. is produced at the bottom of the furnace.' Then the volume of gas is increased and air is admitted gradually and successively through the passages 25-26-- 27-28 until the desired temperature of 20000 F. has been obtained uniformly throughoutthe entire combustion chamber 22 from top to bottom. To increase the temperature the volume of air and gas is increased and vice versa.

If an unequally distributed temperature is desired, as for example, if 20000 F. is desired at the bottom of the retort and 1500O F. at the top, the gas volume is regulated until complete combustion has taken place by the admission of auxiliary air through the lower opening 25, the amount of gas and air being regulated until 20000 F. is indicated by the pyrometer 52. The auxiliary air inlets 26-2728 are then closed unless the temperature at the top of the furnace'is still too high. In this case air is admitted through the opening 28, not for the purposes of combustion, as the combustion is already complete, but in orde-r to mix with the burnt gases and lower their temperatures. By regulating the amount of air and gas admitted the temperature may be held at. the desired 15000 F. at the top.

It will be understood that the lower tem-v perature may be maintained at the bottom and the higher at the top if this is the desired arrangement. In this case only a small amount of auxiliary air, if any, is admitted through the lower passages 25--26, the unburnt gases being allowed to pass upwardly and being completely burned by admission of proper quantities of air through the upper openings 27-28. l

' In any event, all gases are consumed and Y no unburnt gas passes out into stack. Consequently, the furnace is economical in operation and disagreeable odors are avo1ded. In the modified form of my invention shown in Figures 6, 7 and'8 a battery of stills or retorts 56--57--58-59 are provided each of which isoequipped with a gas producer furnace 55,. although, if desired, a single gas producing furnace with a manifold leading to the several retorts or stills mav be used. ln the form of apparatus illustrated the gus producer furnace is provided with an oil burner 61 which'discharges into a primary combustion chamber 62 to which a -limited amount of air is admitted through a restricted opening 63.

Combustion is incomplete in the chamber 62 and the gases pass out of the .producer chamber through the gas conduit 64 direct to the combustion chamber 65, the conduits preferably entering the combustion chamber at a tangent as clearly shown in Figure 8. As shown in Figure 6 the co-mb-ustion chamber 65 is divided into a number of compartments by a plurality of baflies 66-67 which extend alternately front and back of the combustion chamber and materially overlap, forming a zigzag passage for the ases through the combustion chamber. i uxiliary air inlets 68-69-7071 open into the respective subdivisions of the combustion chamber and furnish the air to carry forward and nally complete the combustion rent of gases to the heating chamber 74 but. 100

a great deal of heat is transferred by radiation.

The gases leave the heating chamber 74 at the bottom and pass out through openings 75 to the passage 76 and are led into the heat generating passage 77. The gases pass upwardly and nd an vexit through the conduit y78 which is connected to the stack.

In the construction illustrated the heat generating chamber is formed of a number of hollow tiles 79 spaged within an opening 80 and provided with braces 8l. Ex# tensions ofthe baflles 66-67 dividethe passage 80 into a number of compartments -82-83-84-85 arranged around the heat generating passage 77. Air is admitted to the several compartments through the openings 86-87-88-89, each of Vwhich is controlled by a valve 90. Dampers 91--92- 93-94 are arranged to control the respecjtive hot air openings'68-69-70-71 and heating chamber upon the completion of a run. The cooling feature especially is of great importance in many industrial operations as it is possible by means of the current of cool air passed through the heating chamber upon opening the gates 96 to4 cool a retort or (still in a comparatively short time. Pyrometers 96-97--98 may serve to indicate ,the temperature at various parts of the furnace.v

That type of my invention illustrated in Figures 6, 7 and 8 is well adapted for such industrial purposes as the distillation of bitumens and carbonaceoussubstance. For example, it is very advantageous in the dis tillation of petroleum under super-atmospheric pressures for the purpose of cracking the hydrocarbons. As the fire flash does not come in contact with the still'the scaling, burning and coking which usually occurs in spots where stills are exposed to the fire flash is prevented and the life of the still thus prolonged. The downward draft through the heating chamber creates an even flow of hot gases around the periphery of the still. If the combustion in the several compartments be maintained substantially uniform the temperature in the heating pas- ,l

nace for generating -hot unburnt gases, a

sage 74 willl vary somewhat from top to bottom being greater at the top and diminishing progressively to the bottom. -However the temperature may `be maintained substantially uniform throughout the heating chamber 74 .by so regulating the auX- iliary air inlets that the most intense combustion will take place in the lower comartments of the combustion chamber, the

increased heat of radiation from the lower part of the furnace compensating. for the decrease in temperature of the convected heat in the lower part of the heating cham- One of the chief advantages of my invention is the economy vin fuel consumption inasmuch as combustion is carried on so completely that there is a maximum utilization of the fuel used and a minimum in loss l of unconsumed combustible gases. Perhaps the primary advantage. isy the closeness of heat regulation which is possible by the use of my invention.

The number of retorts and the arrangement of passages may be considerably `manifold for distri tity of air from the heating chambers to the combustion chamber.

2. A furnace comprising a retort, a vmain combustion chamber around the retort, a producer furnace for supplying hot unburnt gas to the combustion chamber, an air heating conduit connected to receive burnt gas from the combustion chamber, air chambers around said heating conduit,la plurality of openings from said air chambers to the combustion chamber, and dampers for regulating the openings to govern the amount of air supplied to different parts of the co-m- 'openings from the air heatingchambers to the combustion chamber, and means for admitting a predetermined quantity of outside air to the heating'chambers.

4. .A furnace comprising a plurality of retort chambers, a combustion chamber for heating each retort chamber, a producer fur- `the several branches ofthe manifold, a plurality of auxiliary air inlets for each of said main combustion chambers-and means for regulating 'said inlets.

5. A furnace comprising a plurality of retort chambers, a combustion chamber for 'heating each retort chamber, a producer furnace for generating'hot unburnt' gases, a manifold for distributing said gases to the `several combustion chambers, means for regulating the distribution of gases through the several branches of the manifold, a plurality of auiiiliary air inlets for each of said main combustion chambers, and a damper for regulating each of said inlets.

6. A'furnace comprisinga plurality of retort chambers, a combustion chamber for heating each retort chamber, a producer furnace for generatin hot unburnt gases, a

uting said gases to the several combustion chambers, means for regulating the distribution of gases through the several branches of the manifold, auxiliary air chambers, heating flues arranged to receive hot burnt gases vfrom the main combustion chamber extending through said air chambers and adapted to supply heat thereto, air inlets connecting the air chambers to the Hmain combustion chambers, dampers for controlling said inlets, and cold air inlets to the auxiliary air chambers and control valves therein.

7. A' furnace comprising a retort, a heatlli ` heating ing chamber surrounding the retort, a main combustion chamber around the heatlng chamber adapted to supply heat to the heatgreater or less proportion of unburnt gases to the main combustion chamber, a plurality ofpassages for admitting air to the main combustion chamber, and means for causing a downward draft of hot gases from the main combustion chamber around the retort.

9. A furnace comprising a retort, a heating chamber having a downward draft surrounding the retort, a main combustion chamber 'around the heating chamber adapted to supply a current of hot gases to the heating chamber, an initial gas producing combustion chamber adapted to supply a greater or less proportion of unburnt gases to the main combustion chamber, means for varying the intensity of combustion in various parts of the main combustion chamber 4so that the heat of radiation imparted to the retort therefrom may compensate for the progressive reduction inv convected heat supplied to the retort in the downward flow of gases thereby creating an even heat throughout the length of the hea-ting chamber.

10. A furnace comprising a retort, a main combustion chamber adapted to supply heat to said retort, a producer furnace for supplying. hot incompletely burnt gas to said combustion chamber, an air heating conduit adapted to receive burnt gas from the'combustlon chamber, air chambers arranged to be hea-ted by said heatingcond uit, passages communicating between said u chambers and the combustion chamber, .and dampers in said passages to control the admission of air from said air chambers to the combustion chamber.

11. A. furnace comprisingl a retort, a main combustion chamber adapted to supply heat to said retort, bailes in saidv chamber dividing same intova plurality of sections, a producer furnaceforl supplying hot incompletely burnt gas tosaid combustion chamber, an air heating conduit adapted to receive burnt gas from the `combustion chamber, air chambers arranged vto be heated by said heating conduit, passages communicating between the several a'r chambers and the several sections respectively, of the combustion chamber, and

means for controlling through said openings.

12. A furnace comprising a retort, a main combustion chamber adapted to supply heat to said retort and having a plurality of compartments, a producer furnace for supplying hot incompletely burnt gas to said combustion chamber, an air heating conduit adapted to receive burnt gas from the combustion chamber, air chambers arranged to be heated by said heating conduit, passages communicating between the several air chambers and the several compartments, respectively, of the combustion chamber, and means for controlling the the passage of air gpassage of air through said passages.

13. A furnace comprising a retort, a. main combustion chamber adapted to supply heat to said retort, a producer furnacev for supplying hot incompletely burnt gas to said combustion chamber,'air` chambers adapted to receive auxiliary air, means for heating said air chambers by means of burnt gas from the combustion chamber, and means for controlling the passage of air from the several air chambers to said lnain combustion chamber.

14. A furnace comprising a retort, a main combustion chamber consisting of a plurality of sections andadapted to supply heat to said retort, a producer furnace for supplying hot incompletely burnt gas to said combustion chamber, air chambers adapted to receive auxiliary air, means for heating said air chambers by mleans of burnt gas from the combustion chamber, passages communicating betweeuthe several air chambers and the several sections, respectively, of the combustion chamber, and dampers in said passages.

15. A furnace comprising a retort, a main combustion chamber adapted to supply heat to said retort, a producer furnace for supplying hot incompletely burnt gas to said combustion chamber, a plurality of passages through which auxiliary air may be admitted to various points in the combustion chamber, dampers in said passages and means for preheating said auxiliary air by means of burnt gas from the combustion chamber.

16. A furnace comprisingl a retort, a main combustion chamber formed in sections and being adapted to -supply heat to said retort, a producer furnace for supplying hot incompletely burnt gas to the combustion chamber, a plurality of passages communicating with the several sections of the combustion chamber and adapted Ato conduct auxiliary air to said sections,

GEORGE D. WHITE. 

